As You See It, April 17, 2012: Keeley, McPherson made Coast Dairies deal happen

The Sentinel ran a front-page story celebrating the acquisition and permanent protection of the 6,800-acre Coast Dairies property on our North Coast. This is one of the largest, most pristine and ecologically diverse properties on the West Coast and will be a public gem for all to enjoy in perpetuity.

That acquisition took years to accomplish and would not have been possible without hard work and persistence from a variety of conservation foundations, and without the courage and vision of former state Sen. Bruce McPherson and former state Assemblyman Fred Keeley. McPherson and Keeley personally lobbied legislators statewide to approve grants and appropriations to acquire the property, and worked with the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, the Trust for Public Land, Save the Redwoods League, and Santa Cruz County officials to put the conservation deal together.

McPherson and Keeley have been tremendous allies, working together for the benefit of all who live here. They represent a model of bipartisan cooperation that we should be proud of. I would like to express my gratitude to both of them, and I hope they too are looking forward to being able to enjoy this monumental accomplishment.

Bill Doyle, Santa Cruz

Strips' unintended consequences

As a South County cyclist, I ride San Andreas more often than the section of Highway 1 north of town. With the recent rains, the bike lane on San Andreas has long stretches that are filled with debris. When that is the case, I can signal and move into the motorized traffic lane. I do not understand how Caltrans views this predicament for Highway 1 after installing the proposed rumble strips. In the perfect world of Caltrans, the 5-foot section of shoulder to the right of the rumble strip will always be perfect roadway for the cyclist. I suspect that cyclists who encounter these conditions which, because of infrequent sweeping, can be ongoing will have no choice but to cross the rumble strip and take the entire lane of Highway 1 in an effort to remain safe. The rumble strips will create a barrier that will make lane sharing unsafe for cyclists.

Bob Montague, Watsonville

Posner unfit for City Council

Micah Posner is unfit to serve as Santa Cruz City Council member due to his reckless decision to lead a non-permitted bike protest on King Street. Posner's illegal protest led families with small children down the middle of a busy street open to traffic. Posner ignored police warnings about the obvious public safety dangers. He was, therefore, duly cited by the city attorney and fined. Santa Cruz Police's Steve Clark stated: "To invite the unsuspecting community out to an event where you haven't bothered to take the proper safety precautions is wildly irresponsible." It would be wildly irresponsible for Santa Cruz to allow Posner to become a City Council Member.

Dan Friedman, Santa Cruz

Safeway has knack for destruction

I can attest to Safeway ruining neighborhoods all the way back to the '70s in Sonoma County where they and Bank of America, under false names, bought up an entire block in Sebastopol. They took the art deco theater, a large, family-run nursery, numerous small businesses on that block, plus caused the demise of every business with a two-block radius. They touted "lower prices" because they bought in volume, and then their prices went up. The businesses they brought in were no asset to the community. They continued these practices throughout that county and just kept going. Now, here they are in Santa Cruz. I hope our citizens will be very careful in any plans involving this conglomerate.

Gloria Sams, Santa Cruz

Taking cues from Romney playbook

The cartoon in your editorial section on Saturday, April 14, implies that Obamacare is the "mother of all mandates". That is not true. Social Security is. Better yet the idea of public schools is. Keep in mind that what now is known as Obamacare was once the Republican answer to the health care quandary in the U.S. So much for compromise"¦ The Republicans will oppose anything, even what they once supported, to beat Obama. Kind of sounds like a Romney strategy don't you think?